ZAGREB, February 11, 2020 - Croatian President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović ended her visit to Germany on Monday by visiting Mainz, where she presented the Croatian Charter to local Croatian associations and met with Croatian and German business people, thanking expatriates for their support during her term in office.

"By awarding this charter, I wish to symbolically complete my presidential term, during which I paid special attention to Croatian expatriates, Croats from Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina who exchanged their home for life outside the homeland," she said.

The charter was awarded for patriotism, volunteer work on the cultivation of Croatian culture, language and customs, and for the promotion of Croatia and its cooperation with Germany.

Grabar-Kitarović said that since the beginning of her term she had insisted on the revival of relations with expatriates.

"Although there are still many obstacles on that road, thanks to the efforts of your communities and associations, in recent years we have witnessed returns as well as economic and social ties whereby we have bridged the gap between Croatians abroad and at home," she added.

More diaspora news can be found in the dedicated section.

ZAGREB, February 11, 2020 - Croatian President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović opened the German-Croatian economic forum in Frankfurt on Monday, highlighting the importance of economic relations between the two countries and the high priority which Croatia attaches to economic cooperation with Germany.

"The development of economic cooperation with Germany as one of Croatia's most prominent economic partners in the European Union continues to be our priority," Grabar-Kitarović said in her opening remarks.

The forum was organised on the premises of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange as part of the Croatian Business Day event marking the Croatian presidency of the European Union.

It was Grabar-Kitarović's last trip abroad in her capacity as President, and she stressed the importance of holding such meetings at this level.

"This economic forum is very important to us because it puts special emphasis on innovative companies and their smart solutions in the context of Industry 4.0, which is an additional chance for us to promote our economic cooperation," the Croatian president said.

She said that Croatia was interested in attracting more German investments, particularly in science, technology and innovation, as well as greenfield investments in the car industry and elsewhere. She noted the support Croatia had extended to a highly innovative project called "Vallis Solaris Croatia", which is aimed at joint implementation of applied research in renewable energy sources.

Grabar-Kitarović also mentioned Croatian citizens working in that part of Germany, saying that their number had increased significantly since Croatia joined the EU in mid-2013 and that their experience could be used in further promoting the partnership between the two countries.

"Many of them, I am confident, could help create a valuable platform for various business partnerships that could achieve two-way mobility or brain circulation, instead of brain drain, between our two countries," the Croatian president said.

She announced another Croatian Business Day event as part of the Croatian EU presidency for May in the northern city of Hamburg.

The Croatian president is also scheduled to visit Mainz, just southwest of Frankfurt, where she will present charters and medals to Croatian associations.

More news about relations between Croatia and Germany can be found in the Politics section.

ZAGREB, February 10, 2020 - Croatian President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović on Monday visited the Frankfurt Stock Exchange and signalled the start of the business day by ringing the traditional bell.

President Grabar-Kitarović arrived in Frankfurt to open the German-Croatian business forum, which was organised as part of the events marking the Croatian presidency of the Council of the European Union in the first half of 2020.

Addressing the forum, the president said she hoped that her presence at the opening of the working day of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange and at the Croatian-German forum would help further strengthen the two countries' bilateral relations.

"My attendance also confirms excellent German-Croatian relations, notably in the economic field," Grabar-Kitarović said in Frankfurt.

In this context she points out the fact that Germany is Croatia's biggest trading partner and the second biggest market for Croatia's exports, while German passport-holders are the most numerous tourists visiting Croatia.

She went on to say that the Frankfurt forum was organised in line with the conclusions of the visit of the German Minister for Economic Affairs and Energy, Peter Altmaier, to Zagreb in October 2019, when the foundations were laid for the deepening of cooperation, primarily in the fields of energy and digital development.

The Croatian president added that the goal of Zagreb was to facilitate an increase in German investments in the country.

The Croatian president was accompanied by Foreign Minister Gordan Grlić Radman and the National Bank (HNB) governor, Boris Vujčić as well as by the Croatian Chamber of Commerce (HGK) president, Luka Burilović.

More news about relations between Croatia and Germany can be found in the Politics section.

ZAGREB, February 6, 2020 - Outgoing President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović said in Zagreb on Wednesday that she was proud of Croatia's achievements on the home and foreign policy fronts during her five-year term, underlining the importance of the Three Seas Initiative.

Speaking at a reception for the heads of diplomatic missions and international organisations in Croatia, Grabar-Kitarović said that she had worked to fulfil her constitutional role of a foreign policy co-creator.

"I dedicated my term to promoting relations between Croatia and your countries, of which I visited many or met for talks with your heads of state and other senior officials in Croatia," said Grabar-Kitarović, who since 2015 has visited 50 countries on five continents.

Commenting on the Croatian EU presidency in the first half of 2020, President Grabar-Kitarović recalled that in her speeches on Croatia and Europe's future she had often underlined the importance of European consolidation, notably in the context of Brexit.

"One of the achievements I take most pride in is the Three Seas Initiative, which has brought together 12 EU members whose aim is to overcome internal imbalances by removing artificial divisions between the old and new member-states and consolidating Europe, its market and territory," she said.

"Today, the countries of the Three Seas Initiative contribute to strengthening the EU's unity, to greater cohesion and connectivity and to its further integration," she said.

Grabar-Kitarović also recalled her project "Sense Croatia" as part of which members of the diplomatic corps had the opportunity to visit different parts of the country, stressing that she had worked on Croatia's branding at home and abroad.

She added that she had dealt with the problem of population loss, one of the most serious problems faced by many countries, which, she said, had been put high on the EU's agenda thanks to her and the government's efforts.

"As the first Croatian woman president and the president of the Council of Women World Leaders, I hope that I have helped many young women break through their own 'glass ceilings', inspiring and motivating them and showing them what can be achieved," she concluded.

The head of the diplomatic corps, Apostolic Nuncio Giorgio Lingua, thanked the outgoing president on behalf of the diplomatic corps.

He underlined her "praiseworthy" efforts to promote regional reconciliation and development as well as the Three Seas Initiative, noting that it was important not only for the countries it directly concerned but also for the entire EU and transatlantic relations.

Speaking of Croatia's EU presidency, Lingua said that it offered a great opportunity for the country to become, through organisation of many events, even more well-known and respected in Europe and the rest of the world.

Lingua also congratulated Grabar-Kitarović on her reaction to the announcement of results of the recent presidential election, whose second round on January 5 was won by Zoran Milanović.

Your well-chosen words and extended hand to Mr Milanović in a particularly sensitive moment set an example for the entire world of civility and democracy, in which the common good comes before personal interests, he said.

More news about Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović can be found in the Politics section.

ZAGREB, February 5, 2020 - Outgoing President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović spent 9.57 million kuna on her presidential campaign, while President-elect Zoran Milanović spent 3.75 million kuna, their campaign financing reports show.

Milanović ran a deficit of one million kuna; he had received 1.28 million kuna from his Social Democratic Party (SDP) and 1.44 million kuna in donations. However, under a government decision, he is entitled to 1.2 million kuna to cover his campaign costs. Milanović spent most of the money on advertising - slightly over 2 million kuna.

Grabar-Kitarović, the candidate of the ruling Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ), spent 9.57 million kuna on her campaign, almost reaching the maximum amount she was allowed to spend under the law.

Under the law on the financing of political activities, election campaigns and referendums, the maximum amount a candidate may spend is 8 million kuna, or 9.6 million kuna if they make it into a second round of voting.

Grabar-Kitarović spent most of the money on advertising - 4.78 million kuna. She received nearly 7 million kuna from the HDZ and about 2.6 million from donors.

The HDZ candidate spent more on her campaign this year than five years ago when she had spent 8.13 million kuna.

More news about presidential elections can be found in the Politics section.

ZAGREB, January 25, 2020 - Outgoing President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović plans to ask the government to provide her with office space after her term expires on 19 February, Večernji List newspaper writes on Saturday.

Her plan, as she herself has revealed, is to continue working on branding Croatia, promoting national interests, dealing with social issues such as domestic violence and promoting environmental protection. She has no intention to criticise or praise her successor, Zoran Milanović, or comment on his work, the newspaper said.

"I didn't think I was going to take an office, but now I'm thinking that one should have a base if one is to do one's work seriously, and I can't just sit somewhere and do nothing," Grabar-Kitarović was quoted as saying.

The outgoing president may exercise her right under the law to have an office. Before her, only Stjepan Mesić exercised this right, while Ivo Josipović returned to his duties at the University of Zagreb School of Law.

In 2016, on the initiative of the MOST party, the law was amended and the rights of former presidents were considerably reduced, as a result of which a former president is no longer entitled to an office for a lifetime but only for five years.

Once Grabar-Kitarović formally requests an office, the government will have to set aside budget funds for that purpose. She will also be entitled to two office clerks, a car, a driver and a bodyguard, Večernji List said.

More news about Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović can be found in the Politics section.

ZAGREB, January 22, 2020 - Outgoing Croatian President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović said on Wednesday that the Three Seas Initiative, as one of the most important initiatives in Europe and the European Union, was important for Croatia, calling on her successor, Zoran Milanović, to support Croatia's participation in it.

Grabar-Kitarović was speaking at a panel called: "Growing Europe: The Economic Vitality of Central and Eastern Europe", organised on the margins of the World Economic Forum in the Swiss ski resort of Davos by the Atlantic Council, Goldman Sachs and the largest Polish insurance group PZU.

In her address, she presented the Three Seas Initiative which she had launched together with Polish President Andrzej Duda. She said that the initiative is aimed at "strengthening this part of the European Union and ensuring that our citizens enjoy the same living conditions as exist in other European countries."

Asked by the press about the questionable support for the Three Seas Initiative of President-elect Zoran Milanović, Grabar-Kitarović said that it was his decision, but that she would recommend to him to support this initiative.

"As for the President-elect, it is up to him to decide whether he will participate or not. I would certainly recommend to him to participate. However, I believe that Croatia will not withdraw from the initiative because it is not just at the presidential level but also at many other levels, including the prime minister, relevant ministries and business," Grabar-Kitarović said.

The panel also involved Polish President Duda and Latvian President Egils Levits.

In her speech, Grabar-Kitarović noted that the European Union was still a community of differences in levels of development between its north and south, east and west, adding that this was due to the circumstances in which the countries of Central Europe had found themselves during several decades of the 20th century.

"During this period, they were hindered or delayed in developing their potentials and were disjoined from modern European economic and political democratic trends," the president said, adding that the consequences of this are most evident in the lack of infrastructure networks in energy, transport and telecommunications – areas that underpin Europe’s growth and development.

Grabar-Kitarović said that with its three main pillars – transport, energy and digitisation – the Three Seas Initiative aims to overcome Europe’s uneven development and contribute to the cohesion of the EU.

Noting that at its core, the Initiative is aimed at the prosperity of the entire European Union, the President remarked that this is especially relevant for the energy independence and security, economic, social and territorial cohesion, as well as the overall resilience of the European Union to the various challenges being faced on the global level.

"Ultimately, the development and prosperity of the countries of Central Europe is bound to have a positive impact in the political arena, as it will strengthen the cooperation among Central European nations and steer them in the direction of greater economic, cultural and other cohesion," Grabar-Kitarović underscored.

She went on to say that Central Europe represents one of the fastest growing EU regions and said she is convinced that with its goals, continued development and supporting deliverables of the summits in Dubrovnik, Warsaw, Bucharest, and Ljubljana, the Three Sees Initiative will boost this success even more.

She added that the participation of the United States and Germany, as partner countries of the Initiative, and the support of the European Commission, but also of the financial institutions – the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the European Investment Bank and the World Bank – has reaffirmed the commitment of everyone involved to the economic development of Central Europe, with a view to reaching the real convergence of the economies of the Initiative countries with the western part of the EU.

"In addition to political challenges that threaten the unity of the European Union – at this moment, Central Europe could be seen as a beacon of commitment to the European idea. It is the idea of cohesion, consolidation, prosperity and a fully integrated and functional internal market, making the European Union more resilient globally," Grabar-Kitarović said.

In conclusion, she said that in the context of EU membership Croatia has two more goals to fulfil: entry into the Eurozone and the Schengen Area.

"Our objective is to join the European Exchange Rate Mechanism in the first half of this year, during Croatia’s Presidency of the EU Council. Becoming part of the Schengen Area is of great importance for the security of not just Croatia but the entire European Union," Grabar-Kitarović said.

After the panel, Grabar-Kitarović has left for Jerusalem to attend the World Holocaust Forum. Among those attending will be French President Emmanuel Macron and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

More news about Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović can be found in the Politics section.

Outgoing Croatian President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic was in the international media this week, her topic how corruption in Croatia starts with cheating at school. It is not the only thing which starts in Croatian schools. 

I don't normally delve into Croatian politics, as it is rather complex to understand for an outsider, but a recent interview with President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic caught my eye for other reasons.

Actually, her interviews and public utterances during a very chaotic, and ultimately unsuccessful re-election campaign have been catching my eye for weeks. Whether it was the bizarre assertion that those who died defending Vukovar during the Homeland War were happy to do so, or that - just a week before the election - President Kolinda had magically struck deals with foreign states which would bring jobs for Croatians living in Croatia for the tidy sum of 8,000 euro per month (almost ten times the average wage in Croatia), something which for some reason could only be made public a week before the election. 

(President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic interviewed in The Guardian)

Having heard so many things coming from the presidential office in the last five years, I am still trying to figure out what President Kolinda achieved in her term of office. 

Apart from becoming the first Croatian to ever touch the World Cup, of course... 

The election lost, it is time for President Kolinda to cement her legacy internationally, and I was somewhat intrigued to see an interview with her in The Guardian this week entitled Croatian Corruption Starts with Cheating at School, Says President. In addition to the subject in the title, President Kolinda managed to offend the Croatian Nursing Council who issued a press release after the interview, as well as distance herself from any corruption in Croatia. While she served in the government of convicted criminal, former Prime Minister Ivo Sanader, she was - according to the article - kept away from the big decisions and had no knowledge of everything. There was no mention of the only convicted criminal who organised many of her birthday parties, or her relationship with the mayor of a large Croatian city, whose activities challenge the very notion of being innocent until proven guilty. To name but two.

But the legacy of President Kolinda is not the subject of this article, it is the notion of Croatian corruption starting in schools. While the president did not elaborate on what steps she had taken to tackle this issue during her five years in power, it got me thinking about other things that start in Croatian schools. Cheating in schools is a universal fact of life, and I don't quite follow the logic of how cheating in a Croatian school is the start of a life of corruption, when cheating in a Swiss school is not. And while it would be a bit much to expect a president to eradicate cheating in schools, efforts to address other, Croatian-made, problems in schools could have a much healthier outcome for the future of this country and its next generation. 

As a foreign parent of two girls in the Croatian schooling system, I have been quite surprised by a number of things over the years. The first is how quickly kids in Croatia are conditioned politically. My youngest came out of kindergarten one day and proudly told me that 'my friend Iva is HDZ and my friend Ivan in SDP.' She had no idea what HDZ or SDP actually were, but the fact that political parties were even being mentioned by 5-year-olds was a sign of how overtly political Croatian society is - the most political of the 10 countries I have lived in. 

Ask a regular British adult on the street how many politicians he or she can name, recognise and know their job title. I doubt the average number would be more than 6. We have no politics in our house and never talk about the subject at home, yet by the age of 9, my eldest knew all about the mayors of Jelsa, Split and Zagreb, Presidents Kosor, Tudjman, Mesic, Kolinda, Prime Ministers Zoki, Oreskovic, Plenky, and there is no party without young Karamarko. This Croatian media obsession with turning average politicians into rock stars is pushing them and their divisive policies into the minds of the youngest in society. 

This all happens outside of school, of course, and the first time I realised what an effect schooling in Croatia could have on my kids was early in the morning of November 19, 2013. It was just after 6 am, and my eldest daughter, aged 7 and in her first year of school, came into our bedroom and woke me up. She was shaking, trembling, crying, and I had never seen her like this. I took her into the bed, kept her warm, safe and loved, then asked her what was wrong. 

"I had my first nightmare, Daddy, it was horrible." As I held her tightly, I wondered what in the world could have given her a nightmare. She lived in a loving family on the safe and idyllic island of Hvar, with lots of friends at school. It made no sense. 

And then I remembered the date. November 19. Which was the day after November 18. Vukovar Remembrance Day, the day that all Croatia rightly stops to commemorate the sacrifice of those who gave their lives in the brutal siege of the hero city before its fall on November 18, 1991. Did this nightmare perhaps have something to do with Vukovar and what they had learned at school? 

"Yes, Daddy, it is horrible. The Serbs came with tanks and they destroyed everything, and then they took an old man and put him on this thing, and then stretched his body, and then they put cigarettes out in his eyes." And she cried again. "Some of my friends drew dead bodies, Daddy, but the teacher told them that they should not draw dead bodies." You can see her homework in the lead photo, complete with the red tick and 'Bravo' from the teacher.

Seven years old. 

Let's forget about the cheating in schools for a moment, President Kolinda, what kind of society are we building where we are giving our kids and grandkids their first nightmares at the age of seven? Burdening them with the division and conflict of the past at such an early age? It is entirely right and proper that Croatian children should learn about and know of the horrors of Vukovar when the time is right, as well as pay their respects. But at the age of seven, with impressionable kids that age drawing dead bodies for homework? Is it really necessary to poison the minds of the next generation?

Vukovar is a very emotive issue in Croatian society, and I shied away from it until last year, when I decided to take part in the annual remembrance parade, as it had never really been documented in English. It was a harrowing day, but much different to how I had envisioned it. You can read my account here. 

I was shocked at how the Vukovar memorial event had been hijacked for political purposes by the politicians of today, President Kolinda included. And when the national focus left the city after its annual day of remembrance, Vukovar returned to its hopeless, abandoned limbo where it has existed ever since peace came. This was perhaps not the prosperous city that those brave defenders would have been happy to die for, as the president claimed, above. Rather than scoring political points and doing nothing to help the survivors of Vukovar, here is how to honour the fallen and assist the survivors.

Cheating in schools is a global problem, and a hard one to eradicate. Giving Croatian kids nightmares from the age of seven is a very Croatian problem, caused by Croatian policies, and extremely simple to eradicate by Croatian politicians. 

Now that would be a presidential legacy worth talking about. 

ZAGREB, January 14, 2020 - The Croatian Nursing Council (HKMS) on Tuesday condemned a statement made by President Kolinda Grabar Kitarović in which she mentioned nurses in the context of corruption.

Talking about corruption in Croatian society, Grabar-Kitarović said that "friends asked her why she did not take anything to the hospital, because nurses expect that." The President insinuated that nurses "expect gifts" from their patients, HKMS stated.

"Nurses and medical technicians do their jobs in a professional and ethical manner, and they are wholeheartedly committed to their patients' well-being. We find linking this humane profession with corruptive actions unacceptable," they stated.

"Every concerned citizen who knows of or suspects a crime is being committed has the duty to report it, indicating the full name of the suspected person. Labelling nursing as a corrupt profession is unacceptable," said the president of the Croatian Nursing Council (HKMS) Mario Gazić.

The Croatian Nursing Council expects the government to finally start addressing the many burning issues in nursing, such as the shortage of nurses, non-recognition of nursing college degrees, poor organization and unsustainable working conditions in nursing, underpayment, injustices in promotions, irregular distribution of the workload, unclear systematization of work positions, and increasingly frequent cases of verbal and physical violence, HKMS said in a press release.

More health news can be found in the Lifestyle section.

Although only 53 years old, Croatian President-elect Zoran Milanović is already a political veteran. Since Croatia's independence, he is the only politician to be elected to two of the most important state functions, first as prime minister and now president.

He was born on October 30, 1966 in Zagreb. In private conversations, he likes to point out that Zagreb shaped his identity, but was also intrigued by his family history, according to Robert Bajruš/Jutarnji List on January 6, 2020. Therefore, Milanović researched archives from Austrian barracks and the Sinj monastery in a quest for information on his ancestors and their life paths. Zoran Milanović's family is from western Bosnia and arrived in the Sinj region as part of a mass migration led by Franciscan Friars in 1687. His mother Đurđica Matasić's family has lived in Sinj for almost two centuries.

Father Held Key Zagreb Government Positions

His father, Stipe Milanović, performed several important roles during the socialist regime: he was Cabinet Secretary to Miko Tripalo, a Zagreb city council member and chaired the Vatroslav Lisinski Hall Construction Committee. In the early 1990s, he joined HDZ (Croatian Democratic Union) and became Assistant Minister to Vlatko Pavletić.

Milanović's claim that his grandfather was an Ustasha member (Croatian WWII Fascists) was one of the more interesting developments in the 2016 election campaign. He was referring to his mother Đurđica’s stepfather, Petar Plišić, but had kept silent about him until then.

He graduated from the Faculty of Law in Zagreb in the early 1990s where he was an excellent student. He received the Rector's Award and participated in the "Telders" competition in public international law at The Hague.

Began Post Law School Career in Foreign Diplomacy

Milanović landed his first job at the Commercial Court in Zagreb and then the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1993, where he arrived upon the recommendation of Ivan Šimonović, professor at the Faculty of Law and Permanent Representative of the Republic of Croatia to the UN. He became advisor to the Croatian Mission to the European Union and NATO in Brussels in 1996 and completed a postgraduate certificate in European Union law there two years later.

He joined SDP (Social Democratic Party of Croatia) immediately after his return to Zagreb in 1999. After SDP won the January 3, 2000 elections as part of a coalition, he was entrusted with a position in communications with NATO. Three years later, he was appointed Assistant Minister of Foreign Affairs under Tonino Picula. However, he left diplomacy and was brought onto the SDP Executive Board at the invitation of Ivica Račan after the HDZ won the 2003 elections.

Assumed SDP Leadership Role After Račan

The SDP party membership overwhelmingly chose Milanović as their new leader when Ivica Račan died in 2007. He had defeated Željko Antunović, Milan Bandić and Tonino Picula; the party’s old guard. While Račan had not considered him his successor; within a month Milanović had taken control of SDP and set about overthrowing Ivo Sanader.

Diana Pleština, widow of the former SDP leader, spoke about the Račan-Milanović relationship. While she has always thought well of Milanović; she also noted:

"Ivica Račan understood that Milanović was young and well-educated, and had experience communicating with the outside world, but he was not referring to Zoran Milanović in the phrase 'New SDP Force'. Instead he was referring to Milanović along with other members of the party. Therefore, the ‘New SDP force’ was not referring to one person, but an overall proposal to continue the rejuvenation of the Social Democratic Party, and one of those players was Milanović,” Dijana Pleština recalled.

However, he lost to Ivo Sanader in the 2007 parliamentary elections and spent the next four years leading the opposition. During that time, he was able to marginalize the old guard within SDP and surround himself with a new generation of associates including Ranko Ostojić, Siniša Hajdaš Dončić, Rajko Ostojić, Ante Kotromanović, Igor Dragovan and Gordan Maras.

Defeated Scandal Ridden HDZ With Kukuriku Coalition

In November 2011, under Milanović’s leadership, the SDP-HNS-IDS-HSU coalition overwhelmingly defeated HDZ, which had been rocked by a series of corruption scandals. Their coalition ruled Croatia for the next four years. Before that victory, Milanović played a crucial role in the election of SDP presidential candidate Ivo Josipović. Josipović's victory had a strategic effect on the downfall of HDZ and Prime Minister Jadranka Kosor, and subsequent victory of the four-party coalition.

Milanović's political experience did not often reveal itself during his first three years in office. In the face of poor economic performance, he was subject to widespread criticism for refusing to make severe cuts to a bloated and inefficient state administration, which was stifling the economy. In addition, almost nobody believed he could make a comeback after he barely succeeded in expelling Slavko Linić from SDP in June 2014. Those doubts were strengthened after Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović narrowly defeated Ivo Josipović in the 2015 presidential election.

"Who would have thought that we were capable of regaining voter confidence back in January," Milanović recently suggested in a private interview.

Political Personal Evolution and Move to Right

Nevertheless, he changed tremendously and became much more accessible while choosing to remain silent about the confrontation with Linić. Even then, a well-known SDP politician revealed that he had been closely observing Milanović's career for seven years, and denied the widespread belief that the SDP chief was incapable of transforming himself:

"After losing the election to Ivo Sanader in 2007, Milanović realized that he had to change. He succeeded because he strengthened the party with new young talent. I’ve also changed and have begun displaying a better part of my character in interactions with people. That’s why I believe he can also change in a positive way,” claimed this member of government.

Praise for Franjo Tuđman and Croatian Nation in Knin

After all, Milanović's metamorphosis, which manifested itself in a slight turn to the right, was first noticed in Knin on August 5, 2014 when he gave a speech commemorating Dan domovinske zahvalnosti (Homeland Thanksgiving Day), which suggested a more patriotic direction. It was then that he first came forward with the conviction that his government was a people's government elected by the Croatian nation, comprised of people who are of primarily Croatian background. "As long is that is the case, we will oversee this country and lead it on the right path with Croatian interests in mind," Milanović said.

Milanović also paid respect to the first Croatian president, Franjo Tuđman, "because he was the Croatian president during a most difficult and challenging time."

“We have been waiting for a thousand years to have our own state and are grateful to those who gave everything for our country. For thousands of years we have worked, fought and died for foreigners, who treated us like foreigners, but they are not our enemies today. We are united with them in the EU and are building a better future together,” said Milanović in Knin.

It was the beginning of a 16-month campaign in which Zoran Milanović decided to tackle the stigma of (Croatian) leftists and present himself as a self-aware national leader. A social democrat who respects Tuđman, frequently mentions Croatia and condemns chauvinism then became his election-winning formula.

He also hired PR expert Alex Braun and his government achieved positive economic results in 2015. However, Milanović narrowly lost the parliamentary elections, remained at the helm of the SDP and defeated his old rival, Zlatko Komadin, in party elections.

Withdrawal from Politics After 2016 Defeat

After the fall of Prime Minister Tim Orešković’s short-lived administration in late 2016, Milanović led the People's Coalition into the elections, but lost, and then announced that he was withdrawing from politics.

In November 2016, he founded EuroAlba Advisory. Earlier this year, the media reported that the company's total 2018 revenue was 744,970 HRK (99,700 EUR), about a 20 percent increase from a 2017 reported revenue of 625,000 HRK (83,600 EUR).

Milanović lost his father Stipe and his younger brother Krešimir, who died after a short illness, during his election campaign late last year.

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